Naira!I called out, reaching for a person who wasn’t there. My hand curled into an empty fist.
The cuffs.
I understood what needed to be done, and that understanding firmed my resolve, made me angry that I’d been weak enough to allow something horrid to invade my mind. My mind’s defenses, previously weakened by Hailey’s stunt, resolidified and slammed shut, and that angry and demanding voice rooting around in it was gone, without a trace that she’d been there.
Hope made my heart soar, and I clung to it. I didn’t doubt the voice. She had Naira, and she knew how far I’d go to save her. To the ends of the Earth. I would go that far, would bring her Nana Ama’s cuffs to save my friend who I would never leave behind. And once Naira was safe, then I could figure out a way to save the cuffs too. Later, there would be many things I would have to ask Nana Ama’s forgiveness for.
“Don’t let her get away,” James barked. Sweat streamed down his face from the complete chaos around us. He quickly began directing search parties to find her, which meant I didn’t have a lot of time. And then I had to consider the message I’d received from Naira. The clock was ticking for Hailey and me, but most of all for Naira.
There were so many things to consider. So many people who questioned my choices, and maybe rightfully so. There was no time to wallow in my mistakes anymore. The breakthrough in my mind, the woman who’d spoken to me, was the first concrete evidence I had of Naira being alive. And when I linked up with Sekou and we found Hailey, convinced her it was safe to go back to the mainland with us, and I could tell her about the intrusion, she’d help too because where Naira was, Luke had to be, right? The thought, the plan, as shaky as it was, and believe me, it was shaky as hell, fueled me as if it was lifeblood.
I picked my way through the cluster as they separated themselves into those on the search and those going home. Sekou met me halfway, his eyes darting everywhere.
I stared up at him, got in close so we couldn’t be heard. “I just heard…” I lowered my voice until it was nearly gone. Sekou had to lean in until we were practically touching. “Naira’s alive.”
He lurched back. “Not this again. This is the worst ti—”
I grabbed his arm. “I mean it. The woman I told you about. She just spoke to me.” I tapped my temple. “In here.”
Sekou’s face twisted, his eyes narrowing in skepticism. “The alarm messed with your equilibrium. No one can punch through unless you let them.”
“That’s the thing,” I said. “My everything was off. She was able to find me. As if we’re linked. She was able to find a thread and follow it through. She has Naira. She wants a trade.”
He eyed me. We were moving now, away from the cluster of people toward the edge. “What kind of trade?”
If I told him, he wouldn’t come. I thought fast. “Hailey for Naira.”
He did a double take. “What? The hell kind of deal is that?”
“We didn’t sit to spill tea, Se, okay? Maybe because Hailey’s family owns the Endowment with all those artifacts and the lady wants access. Anyway, will you help me?”
“What if it’s a trap?”
I shook my head. “I sensed the honesty in her words.” I searched his eyes, wanting him to see how I really believed we had to do this even if I was lying to his face. Just this time. For Naira. For the Isle. My stomach twisted in knots. Oh, Nyame, what the hell was I doing? I should tell Sekou everything. And Nana Ama too. She’d help. Right?
Who was I fooling? Nana Ama had already showed tonight what she was willing to do and not do. She would leave Naira out there as she already had, and she’d toss Hailey into the sea to protect and preserve our home and us. I understood it. But I couldn’t abide by it.
The time was ticking. When Nana Ama settled everyone down, we’d be in her crosshairs. “Sekou?”
His lips twisted in thought, and he tapped a fist against his leg.
Tap, tap, tap.
His jaw flexed beneath his skin as he considered, watching James barking orders and waving his staff of power around as the other Kin moved about in organized frenzy.
When I looked for Nana Ama, she had disappeared.
Finally, Sekou made his decision. “Okay. I’m in,” he said, splitting off in another direction.
At the same time, Nana Ama called to me, “Home, Addae.”
CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE
The forest was illuminated with flashlights bouncing against sturdy tree trunks as the search party tried to flush out Hailey. Meanwhile, Sekou was on his own, tracking her himself.
I rushed back to Nana Ama’s and my home, which was at the farthest end of the Landing, feeling like time was of the essence. When Sekou found Hailey and had the boat off the island ready, I had to be ready as well.
Nana Ama moved around the kitchen, plucking her favorite mug from the cabinet then going to the pantry where she got a bottle of palm oil she regularly had delivered from an international market in Bluffton. From the fridge, she pulled two of many cans of coconut water.
